Container having a permanently attached lid

ABSTRACT

There is disclosed a container ( 10 ) including a receptacle ( 12 ) having an opening ( 18 ) and a lid ( 11 ) for closing the opening. The container further includes a link ( 13 ) which permanently attaches the lid to the receptacle. The link is configured to enable the lid to move between a position in which the lid seals the opening and a position in which the lid is underneath the receptacle and engaged with a ridge ( 19 ) extending about the periphery of the base ( 15 ) of the receptacle.

RELATED U.S. APPLICATIONS

[0001] Not applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[0002] Not applicable.

REFERENCE TO MICROFICHE APPENDIX

[0003] Not applicable.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0004] The following invention relates to a container having apermanently attached lid.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0005] It is known to store food in a plastics container including areceptacle and a snap-on lid. The lid seals to the receptacle to keepfood therein fresh. A problem with such a container is that the lid isoften lost rendering the container useless for the purpose ofmaintaining the freshness of food.

[0006] Another known container has a hinged lid. However such acontainer is not practical for heating food in a microwave oven as thelid must be removed to allow the container to vent during the cookingprocess. An open lid of such a container might strike the roof walls ordoor of a microwave oven, preventing proper rotation of the container ona turntable of the oven during the cooking process.

[0007] It is an object of the present invention to overcome orsubstantially ameliorate one or more of the disadvantages of the priorart and/or, more generally, to provide an improved container.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] According to the invention there is provided a containerincluding:

[0009] a receptacle defining a receptacle interior, the receptaclehaving a base with a surface facing into the interior and an oppositesurface, and having an opening spaced from the base;

[0010] a lid configured to seal the opening; and

[0011] a link permanently attaching the lid to the receptacle andconfigured to enable the lid to move between a closure position in whichthe lid seals the opening and a support position in which the lid isengaged with the opposite surface of the base for supporting thereceptacle.

[0012] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each of thereceptacle and the lid has a projecting tab having a hole definedtherein, the link passing through the holes.

[0013] In a preferred embodiment, the link is in the form of a loop.Preferably, the loop is elliptical.

[0014] In one preferred embodiment, the base defines a base ridge andthe lid defines a ridge-engagement groove which is complementary withthe base ridge, for receiving the base ridge when the lid is in thesupport position. In another preferred embodiment, the lid defines a lidridge and the base defines a ridge-engagement groove which iscomplementary with the lid ridge, for receiving the lid ridge when thelid in the support position.

[0015] In a preferred embodiment, the container is adapted to besupported on a container supporting surface and the base has at leastone support-engaging face for engaging the supporting surface at firstspaced positions when the lid is not in the support position; and thelid has at least one support-engaging face for engaging the supportingsurface at second spaced positions when the lid is in the supportposition, and the second spaced positions are more widely spaced thanthe first spaced positions, thereby more stably to support the containerwhen the lid is in the support position.

[0016] In a preferred embodiment, the receptacle includes a ridge-likerim defining the opening, and the lid defines a sealing groove which iscomplementary with the rim for receiving the rim to seal the openingwhen the lid is in the closure position.

[0017] A container according to embodiments of the invention can be usedto store food or other articles with the advantage that the risk of thecontainer's lid becoming lost is minimized. The lid can also be removedfrom the opening, placed under the receptacle, and engaged therewith.This yields the further advantage that the receptacle is stablysupported on the lid, for example when the container is used in amicrowave oven to heat food.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now bedescribed by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawingswherein:

[0019]FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a container having areceptacle and a lid attached thereto;

[0020]FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional elevational view of thecontainer of FIG. 1;

[0021]FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of the container of FIG. 1with its receptacle supported on, and engaged with, the lid; and

[0022]FIG. 4 is a schematic partly cross-sectional elevational view,shown partly cut-away, of the container of FIGS. 1 to 3 showing the lidadjacent to, but parted from, the base of the receptacle.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0023] In the accompanying drawings there is shown schematically acontainer 10 having a lid 11, a receptacle 12 and a link 13 (shown inbroken-chain lines in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4). The receptacle 12 has aninterior 14. The lid 11 and the receptacle 12 are fabricated frommoulded plastics material. However, in other embodiment, the componentscould be made from metal or other suitable materials, depending on theintended application of the container. The receptacle 12 has a base 15and walls 16 extending from the base and terminating in a ridge-like rim17 which defines an opening 18. In the embodiment shown, the opening 18is generally rectangular, although in other embodiments it could besquare, oval shaped, circular or of any other suitable shape.

[0024] The base 15 of the receptacle 12 has a downwardly projectingridge 19 extending about the periphery of the base.

[0025] Projecting laterally from the receptacle 12 adjacent the rim 17is a tab 20 having a hole 21 therethrough.

[0026] The lid 11 includes, in its under-surface, a sealing groove 22which is complementary with the rim 17 of the receptacle 12, andconfigured to receive the rim as a snap-fit to seal the opening 18.

[0027] The lid 11 also includes, at its upper side, a ridge-engagementgroove 23 which is complementary with the ridge 19 and which extendsalong a continuous path about the lid. The groove 23 is configured toreceive the ridge 19 as a snap-fit, in the configuration shown in FIG.3.

[0028] The lid 11 also includes a tab 24 which has a hole 25therethrough.

[0029] The link 133, which passes through the holes 21 and 25, is made,in different embodiments, of moulded or extruded plastics material,rubber, fibrous material or any other suitable material capable of beingformed as a link. In this regard, the word “link” is not limited to aclosed loop of the type shown, but might, in other embodiments be astraight piece passing through both holes 21 and 25 and having enlargedends preventing the link being removed through the holes. In thepreferred embodiment, the link 13 is elliptical as shown. The link maybe formed from a length of material attached end-to-end to form a loop,the ends being joined by heat bonding, glueing, inter-locking or byother means.

[0030] In use, the receptacle 12 can hold food or other articles and thelid 11 can be snap-engaged with the receptacle to cover the opening 18thus sealing the opening and the interior 14. Thus the position of thelid 11 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 may be considered as the lid's“closure” position. It will be noted that the tabs 20 and 24 are inclose proximity to each other with the holes 21 and 25 aligning witheach other when the lid 11 is in this position.

[0031] The lid 11 can be removed from the opening 18 but not detachedentirely from the receptacle 12 due to the presence of the link 13. Thelonger axis of the ellipse of the link 13 is large enough to enable thelid 11 to be moved between the “closure” position as shown in FIGS. 1and 2 and a position as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 in which the lid isdisposed under the receptacle 12. This may be considered as the lid's“support” position. When the lid 11 is moved into the “support”position, the receptacle 12 can then be pressed onto the lid 11, suchthat the ridge 19 snaps into engagement in the groove 23.

[0032] It will be appreciated that where the container 10 is in thisconfiguration (i.e. with the lid 11 in its support position), thecontainer can, for example, be placed on the turntable of a microwaveoven. The lid 11, by being disposed under the receptacle 12, willsupport the receptacle (hence the term “support′ position”) and willprovide minimal obstruction, if any, within the confined space of theoven, as the turntable rotates.

[0033] It will also be appreciated that while the larger axis of theellipse of the link 13 is large enough to permit the lid 11 to be movedbetween its “closure” and “support” positions, the smaller axis of theellipse is sufficiently small for the link to be largelynon-obstructive.

[0034] To enable easy washing of the receptacle 12 and the lid 11, thelid can be parted from the receptacle, while still being connected tothe receptacle by the link 13. Then, both the receptacle and the lid canbe placed face-down in a dishwasher, or opened at an angle to eachother, preferably substantially face-down in a dishwasher. The permanentconnection of the lid 11 to the receptacle 12 by the link 13 isadvantageous as it prevents the lid and receptacle being completelyseparated during the washing process. During manual washing and drying,the link 13 enables the receptacle 12 and the lid 11 to be placedsubstantially face-down, or at an angle to each other, on a dish rackwithout becoming detached from each other.

[0035] The lid 11 includes faces 26 for engaging a support surface (suchas a microwave oven turntable) on which the container 10 is supported,these faces being more widely spaced than corresponding faces 27constituted by the lower extremities of the ridge 19. Thus, when the lid11 is its “support” position, it provides more stable support for thereceptacle 12 than would be the case if the lid were not in its“support” position—that is, if the receptacle were directly supported onthe support surface rather than on the lid. This feature makes thecontainer 10 particularly suitable for uses such as in a microwave oven,where stable support of the container during rotation of the microwaveoven's turntable is desirable.

[0036] It should be appreciated that the invention, being defiried bythe claims, is not limited to the embodiments described, but extends tomodifications and alterations thereto as would be understood by thoseskilled in the art. For example, rather than having sealing groove 22and ridge-engagement groove 23 at opposite faces of lid 11, thesegrooves could both be at the same face thereof.

I claim:
 1. A container including: a receptacle defining a receptacleinterior, the receptacle having a base with a surface facing into theinterior and an opposite surface, and having an opening spaced from thebase; a lid configured to seal said opening; and a link permanentlyattaching the lid to the receptacle and configured to enable the lid tomove between a closure position in which the lid seals the opening and asupport position in which the lid is engaged with said opposite surfaceof the base for supporting the receptacle.
 2. The container of claim 1,wherein each of the receptacle and the lid projecting tab having a holedefined therein, the link passing through the holes.
 3. The container ofclaim 1, wherein the link is in the form of a loop.
 4. The container ofclaim 3, wherein the loop is elliptical.
 5. The container of claim 1,wherein the base defines a base ridge and the lid defines aridge-engagement groove which is complementary with the base ridge, forreceiving the base ridge when the lid is in said support position. 6.The container of claim 1, wherein the lid defines a lid ridge and saidbase defines a ridge-engagement groove which is complementary with thelid ridge, for receiving the lid ridge when the lid in said supportposition.
 7. The container of claim 1, adapted to be supported on acontainer supporting surface and wherein: the base has at least onesupport-engaging face for engaging said supporting surface at firstspaced positions when the lid is not in said support position; and thelid has at least one support-engaging face for engaging said supportingsurface at second spaced positions when the lid is in said supportposition, wherein the second spaced positions are more widely spacedthan said first spaced positions, thereby more stably to support thecontainer when the lid is in said support position.
 8. The container ofclaim 1, wherein the receptacle includes a ridge-like rim defining theopening, and the lid defines a sealing groove which is complementarywith the rim for receiving the rim to seal the opening when the lid isin said closure position.